Improved machine for cutting down heels of boots and shoes



waited gratte @sind Gtjjire.

.JOSEPH L. JOY-CE, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT.

Letters Patent No. 91,136, dated June 8,1869.

IMPROVE!) MACHINE FOR CUTTING- DOWN HEELS OIE BOOTS AND SHOES.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all whom 'it'ma/y concern:

`Be it known that I, J osEPH L. JOYCE, ofNew Haven, inthe county of New Haven, and State of Connecticut, have invented a new Improvement in Cutting Down Heels for Boots and Shoes; and I do hereby declare the following, when taken in connection with the accompan'ying drawings, and the letters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, and which said drawings constitute part of this specication, and represent, in

Figure 1, a side View;

Figure 2, a front view; and-in Figure 3, a vertical central section.

The object of this invention is the construction of a mechanical device for .dressing or forming the forward edge of boot-heels, the process being known as cutting down and The invention consists in the arrangement of an adjustable holder for the last, combined withnan adjustable cutter, arranged relatively to each other, and with suitable guides, so that, by a single stroke, the heel is cut down.

To enable others skilled in the art tg fully understand my invention, I will proceed to describe the same, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

A is the frame or-base of the machine.

B, the holder, pivoted so as to swing at a point, a, the upperend of the said holder-'provided with 'a stud, b, with an adjustable nut, d, thereon, so that the last niay be placed on to the upper end of the stud, and its position adjusted by the nut d, so that successive lasts of the same size will bring the shoe or boot thereon into the same relative position as the preced-v ing lasts.

f is the cutter, arranged upon a carriage, C, which moves` vertically in guides,` D, (see g. 2,) the said guides being supported in arms E, of the frame, and

so that the said guides may be adjusted to incline the cutter vertically by means of a slot, n, in the upper arm, (or, may-be, in the lower arm, or both.)

The carriage is operated by thetreadle F, which is connected to the carriage by a rod, G.

On the carriage is arranged a guide, L, adjusted up and down "by means of a nut, fm, so that when the cutter has been forced down the required distance, the said guide L will strike the sole of the shoe, andarrest the further downward movement of the cutter.

The operation of the machineis as follows:

The bootor shoe is placed upon the holder, as seen in fig. 3, and swung out `or in, as the case may be, until in the proper position for the cutter to strike the surface of the heel, the inclination of the cutter having been adjusted so as to cutdown the heel either vertically or inclined, as maybe desired, and the guide L adj usted as to the length of the cut. 'lhen the operator, holding the shoe firmly, and placing his foot upon the treadle F, forces the cutter downward, and, at a single stroke, cuts down' and finishes the front of the heel.

By this operation, much time and labor are saved, and all risk of injury to the sole, by the process of cutting, is avoided, and all Work performed is of a uniform and finished character.

Having fully described my invention,

What I claim as new and useful, and desire to secure. by Letters Patent, is-

The combination of the adjustable holder B with the cutter f, and guide L, arranged upon an adjustable carriage, C, so as to operate in the manner and for the purpose substantially as set forth.

JOS. L. JOYCE.

Witnesses:

p A. J. Trm'rs,

J. H. SHUMWAY. 

